The ongoing recession and the squeeze on mortgage lending are producing something of a bonanza for cash-rich landlords – those able to secure low interest mortgages with a good deposit.

If you’re careful you can pick-up good properties at bargain basement prices, whilst being virtually guaranteed a solid income stream.

With rentals in high demand in most areas and social landlords and local authorities strapped for cash, landlords continue to be the main source of growth for housing provision in the UK.

The Private Rented Sector (PRS) has grown steadily from a low point of 6 to7% of UK residential housing stock by value in the 1990s to around 19% today, and this proportion is expected to be well over 20% by 2020.

Landlords have been pilloried by some recently as contributing to the present housing market troubles, but the facts are landlords, unlike the traditional social housing providers, have “come up with the housing goods”. They have now been emboldened by a secure income, with the prospect of long-term capital appreciation as a potential bonus, in a period when alternative cash investment yields are extremely low – non-existent if inflation and taxation is taken into account.

Contributing to the growth of the sector has been a large cohort of “accidental” or “reluctant” landlords, unable to sell their homes, some of whom have since come to realise the benefits of being a landlord investor and going on to build up a buy-to-let portfolio.

The downside risk is that during a recession the guaranteed income can come to an abrupt end if tenants either can’t or won’t pay the rent.

Good landlord self-management or using a good professional agent is crucial, and this is where many newbies fall down: anyone can let out a property but maintaining that crucial cash-flow and staying on the right side of the law takes experience and professionalism as a landlord or agent.

High demand, low supply and the inevitable rent increases are now resulting in louder and...

louder cries from some quarters for government to control rents and increase security of tenure.

There is a real danger of going back to the Rent Act era troubles. It beggars belief that a half century of proof that rent controls long-term work against tenants would be overturned in an instant by some well meaning but misguided MPs.

These measures would inevitably drive many landlords out of the market, many would run their properties down by neglecting repairs, as returns become uneconomic, and the end result would be even more housing shortages.